Care and Maintenance Guide
Care and Maintenance Guide
Introduction
CFGroup takes great care to deliver high
performance products that will provide many
years of beneficial use. All furniture is subject to
normal wear and tear and may even be subject
to intentional or unintentional abuse, all of which
could cause a product to fail and result in property
damage or personal injury. Therefore, it is very
important to conduct regular care and maintenance
checks at the point of use to minimize risk and
ensure a safe operating environment for the general
public.
Our products are intended for use in commercial
applications where it is good business practice, and
usually a legal obligation, for an owner, a manager,
or members of staff to maintain a safe and clean
public space. This obligation includes the care
and maintenance of the building, equipment, and
furniture, which may be used by employees, and
members of the public. Failure to perform regular
care and maintenance will void the Company’s
warranty.
If you notice anything wrong with the furniture
you are using, or furniture available for use by the
public or employees, you should immediately bring
this to the attention of appropriate management,
preferably in writing. The failure of any wear
and tear item could result in product failure and
damage to property, or injury to an employee or
member of the public.
This guide is not intended to be a comprehensive
maintenance or repair manual, nor is it intended to
replace any organization’s specific checklist, code
of practice, or any building code or legal obligation.
This guide has been developed to provide some
basic principles and advice that will be useful for
anyone who is responsible in any way for the care,
maintenance, and use of furniture in a public place.
This guide is not intended to replace professional
care and maintenance procedures, or regular
after sales maintenance and cleaning services
provided by experienced professionals, which are
all considered to be essential in maintaining high
performance furniture in a public place.
Products which use an electrical power source
should be installed and regularly checked for safe
use by a qualified electrician. Most jurisdictions
have codes for the specification, installation, and use
of these products in a public space and the reader
should seek professional advice in these matters.
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Care and Maintenance Guide
Who needs to read this guide?
Facilities management personnel, anyone who
specifies furniture (such as an interior designer
or architect), anyone who buys or sells furniture
(such as an independent sales representative or
professional furniture buyer or dealer), anyone who
provides furniture for use by members of the public
or employees, and anyone responsible for the care,
cleaning and maintenance of furniture in a public
place should read this guide
Why should I read this guide?
This guide will help you prolong the useful life of
furniture, prevent damage to the product during
normal use, identify damage caused by wear and
tear or abuse, and significantly reduce the risk of
product failure, and possible injury, to yourself and
others.
How do I ensure good furniture
care & maintenance?
There are a few basic principles, which will help
ensure excellent service from furniture designed for
use in a commercial application:
daily cleaning. A small maintenance item that is
attended to in a timely manner will prevent more
significant damage or personal injury, which may
result if the issue is ignored.
• Establish clear accountability and a sign off
process, which documents the successful
completion of the tasks assigned to
management and staff, and records the activity,
the date, and location where these tasks were
completed.
• Maintain good quality, date stamped records,
and checklists of all care, cleaning, and
maintenance activity, as this helps to avoid
missing an important step and may be vital
in the event of a warranty claim or a product
liability claim.
• Immediately remove from service any item
which appears unserviceable or which may
result in further damage to the item itself or
other property.
• Use only the manufacturer’s recommended
parts and equipment for repairs or maintenance,
use only the manufacturer’s recommended
equipment to move furniture.
• Check the furniture upon delivery at the point of
use. Make sure that all of the parts have arrived
in good condition and the product is assembled
correctly. It is wise to obtain the assistance
of a professional installation crew to help with
this task and to conduct a post delivery check
shortly after the furniture has been installed and
placed in use. Immediately report any issues
that are observed from these checks and remove
from use any product that does not seem to
work properly or meet the specification for that
product.
• Establish a care and maintenance procedure,
which has daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and
annual check steps clearly documented for
all members of staff who are responsible for
regular cleaning and maintenance. The daily
steps can be as simple as a visual check during
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• Ensure that the product is only used for the
purpose intended and is not subject to abuse.
• Check that the furniture has been placed on a
level, stable, and smooth floor surface. On
many occasions, what appears to be a defect
with the furniture is actually the result of good
quality furniture being placed on a poor quality,
uneven, or unstable floor surface. Adjustable
glides may help level the furniture in certain
situations but can never compensate for a floor,
which is in bad condition.
• Many furniture surface materials such as wood
and metal finishes, veneers, laminates, wood
edges, plastics, etc will be subject to color
fading and physical deterioration when exposed
to sunlight or artificial UV sources. You should
not use or store furniture in these conditions
unless it has been specified for such use.
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Care and Maintenance Guide
General cleaning tips
There are many excellent cleaning products,
including some very effective natural and
environmentally friendly products, available today,
but due to the multiplicity of materials used in
furniture manufacturing it is wise to seek the
manufacturer’s advice for the specific products
and materials used on your products. If you are
unsure, seek the advice of an experienced and
recommended commercial cleaning professional.
You should never allow anyone to use harsh
detergents or abrasive cleaners, or soak materials
in water, this will almost always result in product
damage and may even void your warranty. Here are
some tips for specific materials commonly used in
furniture manufacturing, but you should always seek
professional advice from qualified professionals;
• Wood: use a liquid cleaner such as a wax polish
combination to clean wood finishes. Use a wax
repair stick to remove minor scratches. Wipe
off any water spills immediately. Never expose
to extreme temperatures or moisture, avoid
exposing wood surfaces to bright sunlight. Coat
wood with a hard wax paste every three to four
months during the first year of use and apply
less frequently after that.
• Metal: remove dirt and fingerprints from plated
finishes with a non-abrasive glass cleaner or
damp cloth. Apply furniture polish once every
six months to maintain the surface. Wipe down
powder coat finishes with a damp cloth and
use a light soap and water mixture for stubborn
stains and grease marks. If the finish is chipped,
a touch up paint should be used to prevent
further chipping and corrosion. Remove dirt
from textured powder coat or hammer tone
finishes by brushing with a soft bristle dry brush.
• Fabrics: a professional service is highly
recommended for all fabrics since cleaning
methods vary greatly depending on the type of
fabric and the surface treatment which may have
been applied to deliver performance features.
Protective coatings such as Scotchgard, Zepel,
etc must be reapplied every year to maintain
protection. It is important to note that most
flame retardant treatments are salt solutions
and cleaning these treated fabrics with water or
water based foams will result in salt ringing. You
should test any proposed cleaning method on
a small portion of the fabric before proceeding
with the entire installation. Dirt and crumbs
can be gently brushed or vacuumed off the
surface of the fabric. Spills should be soaked up
with an absorbent paper towel and wiped off
immediately with a cloth before the spill dries in.
• Vinyl and fused edges: wipe off all spills to
prevent stains. Use a light liquid detergent,
suitable for cleaning vinyl, and wipe the surface
with a damp cloth after cleaning.
• Laminates: apply self-cleaning wax every three
months. Remove stains by wiping the surface
with a damp cloth and soap, or liquid detergent.
Remove stubborn stains with a damp paste of
baking soda, which you should leave on the
stain for a few minutes and then blot away.
Always refer to the manufacturer’s guidelines for
cleaning their products.
• Plastic shells: clean with warm water and a
light household detergent, use a soft brush for
stubborn stains.
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Care and Maintenance Guide
What types of maintenance
issues should I look for?
All products in a commercial application should be
visually inspected daily and examined more closely
every 30 days. Remember, the longer the product
has been in service, the more likely it is to have
some maintenance issue and there will be a need for
more frequent checks. Here are some typical wear
and tear items, although this is not meant to be an
exhaustive list:
• Loose screws and component parts
• Missing hardware
• Damaged, missing, or worn glides or casters
• Torn, frayed, or excessively worn fabric
• Splintered wood
• Cracked / fatigued welds or joints
• Loose or wobbly joints, legs, or columns
• Cracked or chipped laminate and edges
• Instability or structural failure of parts or the
whole product
• Unable to use for normal purposes
• Failure of mechanisms and build up of waste
around the mechanism
What are the issues which
require immediate repair?
We highly recommend professional service for all
structural repairs or repairs which may require
specialized tools, materials, and equipment. If
you have any concerns about a product, please
immediately remove it from service. Some
facilities have maintenance crews who can tackle
tasks of varying degrees of difficulty and here are
some examples;
• Protruding nails, screws, and fasteners should
be removed or replaced and wood splinters
should be cut off, sanded smooth, and refinished
to avoid tears and lacerations
• Locking pins, screws, bolts, and fasteners
should be periodically tightened, taking care not
to over tighten or strip out the threads.
• Lubricate all swivels and mechanisms; avoid
putting grease or oil on materials other than the
relevant parts. Take special care to prevent oil
or grease spreading onto plastic components,
fabric, laminates, and wood materials.
Any product showing signs of structural failure or
abuse should be taken out of service immediately
to prevent complete failure or personal injury. Most
early stage deterioration of parts or products
is apparent to users and staff, who should be
encouraged to report any item which they feel is
unserviceable or which shows signs of wear and tear
or abuse, as this can be a precursor to failure.
• Replace missing screws, bolts, fasteners, nails,
glides, and casters to prevent instability or
damage to floors.
• Repair cracked or broken welds, loose rails,
stretchers, joints, seat pads, cracked or
chipped laminates, edges, feet, etc.
• Columns must be seated properly on the
hub of the base.
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Care and Maintenance Guide
Storage & moving tips
Most furniture is designed to be static and should
not be moved without proper handling equipment
and adequate numbers of experienced movers.
Even furniture which is designed to be regularly
moved requires careful handling to avoid damage.
All furniture must be stored in temperature and
humidity controlled environment or there is a
serious risk of damage, which might range from
wood products splintering in very dry, low humidity
climates, fabric becoming moldy, and metal
oxidizing in salty or high humidity climates. Some
other important points worth noting are;
• Never slam the top and base together on flip
top tables and do not drop, rack, or bounce on
the top surfaces or edges of tables.
• Do not stand on furniture or rock backward on
chairs.
• Stacking chairs should not be dropped,
slammed, or dragged when being stacked,
stored, or placed in use, this will damage glides,
backs, seats and frames, and tear fabric.
Where can I obtain additional
help and advice?
There are many excellent web sites, bookstores,
college courses, and professional service providers
where you can find additional advice and
information. It is very important to note that in
situations where you are providing a service to the
public which includes the provision of furniture,
there is no substitute for seeking professional
advice with regard to the purchase, maintenance,
and general procedures associated with furnishing
a safe and comfortable experience for all.
• Freestanding booths must not be dragged
across the floor; this will loosen the joints and
cause instability.
• Do not drag tables across uneven or carpeted
floors and do not move or reposition by pulling
or lifting on the modesty panel.
• Tables over 30”x 60” long, or with wood
edges, should be set up and stored by two (2)
or more people.
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